Chicagoan Tapped in Stolen Art Investigation

The same day as four Southern California museums were raided, authorities searched the private museum of Barry MacLean, a trustee of the prestigious Art Institute of Chicago. A Los Angeles Times article said:

The affidavit suggests that MacLean built his well-known art collection with substantial help from Robert Olson, an alleged smuggler of illicitly excavated American Indian, Thai and other Asian artifacts.  

In a phone interview Monday, Olson confirmed that MacLean was his biggest client, saying the Chicagoan purchased as much as $50,000 to $100,000 in Asian antiquities a year during the eight to 10 years they did business.